The present invention relates to heated air circulators, and in particular, to a circulator adapted to be placed against a radiant-type heating stove, with the height of the circulator conforming to the height of the stove.
Air circulators adapted to receive heat from a radiant-type heating stove and distribute heated air are known. Such circulators are generally dimensioned to fit stoves of specific sizes. Thus, different-sized circulators are required for different sizes of heating stoves.
Circulators known in the prior art typically provide a manually-controlled damper for admitting unheated air thereinto. By correct adjustment of such damper, the temperature of heated air issuing from the circulator can be maintained relatively constant. However, this requires periodic damper adjustment on the part of the user. Furthermore, the flow regulation so achieved may not provide optimal heating efficiency.
It is, therefore, an important object of the present invention to provide an air circulator which is adaptable for use with radiant-type heating stoves of different sizes.
It is another object of the invention to provide an air circulator which is free-standing, and can be placed against a side of a heating stove in heat-conducting relationship therewith.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide an air circulator in which the flow of unheated air into a circulator chamber is regulated by a temperature-controlled damper.
The present invention is a heated air circulator adapted to be placed adjacent one wall of a radiant-type heating stove. The housing of the circulator, which defines a heating chamber therein, includes an upright back wall, opposed upright side walls, and a bottom joining the lower edges of these walls. The back and side walls are unjoined along their upper edge portions. A plurality of spaced-apart, transverse fold lines on the back and side walls, where the same are unjoined, permit portions of these walls to be broken off and folded over to form a chamber top at a height conforming to the height of the stove against which the circulator is to be placed.
The circulator has an intake opening in the back wall and a damper plate mounted adjacent this opening for movement between open and closed positions wherein flow of air through the opening is permitted and restricted, respectively. Movement of the plate is controlled by a temperature-responsive spring located within the chamber and interconnecting the plate and the circulator back wall.